Genji-monogatari is said to be basically fatalistic, but a drastic transformation of its religious view can be seen in the sequel part of the story. While in the main part Buddha is a being who, as Genji believes, predestines one's life, in the sequel the god is regarded as a principle by which, as Kaoru does it, one can reflect oneself to lead a better life. In short, Buddhist fatalism (sukuse) finally yields to a more instrumentalist view (hoben). Probably this shift was caused by the anti-fatalistic idea of Kakuun, a monk of the Tendai school, which the author knew while writing the sequel.
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